Cherries, Pickled and Jammed

It is Cherry time again and who doesn't like them? They are just great and healthy for us as well. In a previous post about Cherries before I told you of the fantastic healing qualities of the dried stems, today I will give you two typical Turkish Recipes, one for a Cherry pickle and one for a Cherry Jam.


Kiraz Tursu - Cherry Pickles


You can pickle probably almost anything and Cherries are definitely one of those things. These might not be to every ones taste but just think of lovely pickled cherries on a ploughman's lunch plate or arranged delicately next to a chicken breast.


1 kilo Cherries
salt 
water
1 lemon or citric acid


Wash, clean and destem cherries put into your jars.  Fill your jars 3/4 of the way with water and add salt to taste to make a moderate brine solution.  Add in half a teaspoon of citric acid per container.  Close jars and store for 2 weeks before tasting.


If you make one large container ie plastic container you can add in a sliced lemon.


For those of you out there who aren't familiar with brining here is a basic recipe. 1 cup of salt to every 4 litres of water.  Taste that and if you want stronger or lighter use more and or less salt.  To do cukes you can use 1 tsp salt to every cup of water.  It all really depends on your palate and whether you are on a low sodium diet.


Kiraz Recel - Cherry Jam


There are jams and there are jams.  I come from Australia and here we like our jams nice and thick so it will stay on a piece of toast or balance on a scone.  When I went to Turkey my whole idea of jam was challenged.  To the Turks jam is a watery affair that your bread needs to be dipped into.


1 kilo Cherries
3 cups sugar
half cup water
1 pinch citric acid


Wash and destone cherries.  Place sugar and water into a saucepan and bring to the boil.  Boil for about 5 minutes then add in the cherries.  Continue to boil mixture and add in the citric acid.  Boil until the mixture thickens slightly or until it forms a ball on a plate.  Take off the heat and cool then bottle(can).


I hope you like both of these recipes as I said before these are 2 Turkish recipes.  If you google cherries you can find lovely pies and desserts but they wouldn't be Turkish.  If you have a Turkish boyfriend or husband or friends make these recipes for them and I'm sure you will be able to win some points.


Tell me readers what food do you make that can give you some sure points with your loved ones?


http://verygoodrecipes.com/turkish

Kömbe, Börek

This is Kömbe a börek that is made in a baking tray.  It is made up of thin yufka(phyllo)sheets with filling and layered.  Usually anything from 9 to 12 layers.  The more sheets it has the more the neighbours are impressed.
  
It has a base of 2 sheets, some women put 3.  Then a layer of filling then another 2 sheets.  Between the pastry sheets you need to sprinkle or brush on some oil.  This makes the pastry sheets puff up. Now if you make the sheets yourself as my other sister inlaw is doing and they are nice and thin like hers you have to use 2.  If your not that great at making the sheets and they are a bit thick use one on the base.  The pastry sheets and filling are all layered until you have your desired amount of layers.  The mixture you can see is onion and potato with a bit of sweet pepper paste(tomato paste can be substituted).  It wasnt cut that well but thank goodness that dosnt affect the taste.  It is baked quickly in a hot oven until nice and brown.  

Easy meal usually eaten with pickles and ayran.

If you are not a Turkish housewife and dont want to make the yufka sheets yourself you can easily make this at home using phyllo pastry sheets instead.  


1pkt Phyllo pastry
4 par boiled potatoes
2 onions
salt
2 tbsp sweet pepper paste/tomato paste
oil


Grate the potato and thinly slice the onions, mix well.  Add in the salt and pepper paste and mix well again.


Depending on the size of your tray and how many layers you want to make depends on how many sheets you will use.  Phyllo is fairly thing so I would be putting 3 sheets down the bottom of your pan.  Oil your pan well.


Start by layering the pastry and potato filling - pastry (3) - potato - pastry 2 - potato etc until you have the desired amount of layers.  An important thing to remember is that less is more when it comes to the filling.  You have alot of layers so you dont want to overfill.  The thinner the final product is the nicer it is especially if you are generous with the oil the whole thing almost becomes fried.  If you dont want a fried end product use less oil and the börek is nice and light.


Cook in a very hot oven until the top is a nice brown.  Some people put egg on the top, some use oil and some use a mixture of oil and yogurt(this makes the börek nice and soft).  A good tip is after it comes out of the oven and is piping hot sprinkle on some water then place a tea towel on top.  This makes it softer.  If you want fried and crispy skip the water.

Meze

Meze is probably my favorite way to eat.  Little plates of everything. During summer is the time when we mainly eat like this.  I like to have a few containers in my fridge will all these delicacies ready for an easy meal. Meze can be really anything that is in season and served cold, I have not yet seen a hot meze here in Turkey.  They can range from salads to any veggie put into garlic yogurt to a plate of watermelon.

What can you find on a Meze tray if you come to Turkey? 

Slices of Turkish style fetta cheese drizzled with olive oil and served with olives.
Stuffed vine leaves, usually just with rice
Any of the olive oil dishes
Green salads
Coban salad-tomato and cucumber based salad
Potato salad
Tomato Ezme - like a hot tomato salsa
Slices of Pastirma - turkish style salami
Various pickles
Mucver - zuchinni puffs
Fruits in season
Fried vegetables with garlic yogurt
Fried or pickled fish
Cigara Borek - filo pastries filled with a cheese similar to the continental cottage cheese
Cold bean dishes
Carrot salad
Eggplant salad
Beetroot salad
Hummus
Cacik - cucumber salad
Fried liver
Kısır - tabouleah type salad
Bowl of plain yogurt
ETC....

All of this is usually washed down with alcohol if eaten at a restaraunt.  What are your favorite Meze dishes?  Want the recipe? Let me know and you can be making wonderful Meze tables at home.